The Tourism and Heritage TIG Student Paper Competition: Student papers should entail original research on the themes of “tourism” and/or “heritage” broadly defined, including topics such as heritage, archaeology and tourism, ecotourism, and cultural resource management. Top papers will be selected for inclusion in an organized paper session at the 2015 Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) Annual Meetings in Pittsburgh, PA, and an award will be presented to the best paper in the session. Eligible students must be enrolled in a graduate or undergraduate degree program at the time they submit their paper. Submissions must be original work of publishable quality. The work may be undertaken alone or in collaboration with others, but for papers with one or more co-authors, an enrolled student must be the paper’s first author.

The competition involves a two-step process. Step one involves the solicitation and selection of expanded paper abstracts (of 500 words or less; saved as a Word document) for the organized session. Abstracts must be submitted by SEPTEMBER 15, 2014 to the SfAA Office (info@sfaa.net). Students selected for participation in the session will then submit full papers for judging by the December 15, 2014 deadline. The winning paper will receive a cash award of $500 and will be honored at the 2015 SfAA Meetings in Pittsburgh. Email the SfAA Office (info@sfaa.net) or Melissa Stevens (melissa.stevens7@gmail.com) for more info.

The Valene Smith Tourism Poster Competition: This is a special competition for the best posters on the theme of "tourism," broadly defined, including topics such as heritage, archaeology and tourism, ecotourism, and cultural resource management, during the annual meeting. Posters are an excellent means of communicating your research and allow you to interact directly with others interested in your work. Three cash prizes will be awarded - $500 for first prize, $250 for two Honorable Mentions. Poster abstracts are submitted directly through the SfAA website (www.sfaa.net). Please go to the SfAA web site for additional information on the Meetings and the poster abstract submission process. You will also find a more detailed description of the Competition as well as information on the winners from previous years (click on "Awards and Prizes" and go to "The Valene Smith Prize"). The deadline for the receipt of poster abstracts for the 2015 Competition is OCTOBER 15, 2014. Email the SfAA Office (info@sfaa.net) or Tim Wallace (tmwallace@mindspring.com) for more info.